Ribbon applying attachment for sewing machine



Oct. 27, 1964 RIBBON Filed Oct. 17, 1961 A ROY 3,154,033

APPLYING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR ALBERT ROY ATTORNEY Oct. 27, 1964 A. ROY 3,154,033

RIBBON APPLYING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINE Filed Oct. 17, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR ALBERT ROY BY a ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,154,033 RIBBON APPLYING ATTACHMENT FOR SEWING MACHINE Albert Roy, 15 Boyd St., Lawrence, Mass, assignor of one-half to Father Jean Roy, Washington, D.C. Filed Oct. 17, 1961, Ser. No. 145,583 1 Claim. (Cl. 112-152) The present invention relates generally to sewing machine attachments, and more specifically to an attachment for controlling the feeding of a tape or ribbon in a sewing machine.

In many sewing machines, a problem arises with respect to uniformity of feed between a cloth piece and a ribbon or tape to be attached thereto. If the length of cloth fed beneath the foot of a sewing machine is not equal to the length of the ribbon being fed, an undesirable, unsightly juncture or seam between cloth and ribbon results. This lack of uniformity of feed is often due to the fact that the mechanism for feeding the ribbon is not responsive to the cloth feed. Therefore, a greater amount of cloth than ribbon may be fed thus causing the cloth to rumple and producing an unsightly seam.

The present invention overcomes the aforementioned problems by providing means for controlling the feeding of a ribbon beneath the foot of a sewing machine, said means being responsive to the amount of cloth being fed to control tension in the ribbon to insure that a substantially equivalent length of cloth and ribbon are joined together.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide an improved ribbon-feeding attachment for sewing machines.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved ribbon-feeding attachment for sewing machines which operates to affect feeding of a length of ribbon which is substantially equivalent to the length of cloth to which said ribbon is to be attached.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved ribbon-feeding sewing machine attachment which operates to control the feeding of a ribbon beneath the foot of a sewing machine in response to the motion of a cloth piece to which said ribbon is to be attached, passing under said foot by controlling the tension in said ribbon.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved ribbon-feeding attachment for sewing machines which effects a uniform seam between a cloth piece and a ribbon to be attached thereto.

Briefly, the present invention may be described as comprising a ribbon-feeding supply spool rotatably mounted on a sewing machine, a spring and adjusting means attached to said spool to permit adjustment of the resistance to rotation of said spool, a tape tension controlling member mounted above the path of travel of a cloth piece to which a ribbon is to be attached, and guide arms selectively positioned to direct the path of said ribbon between the supply spool and a point beneath the foot of a sewing machine, at which point the ribbon is attached to the cloth piece. The ribbon or tape is wound through the tape tension controlling member which is positioned in the path of the ribbon at a point intermediate the supply spool and the sewing machine foot. The tape tension controlling member, when in a rest position, bears against the cloth piece to which the ribbon is to be attached. As operation of the sewing machine is commenced, movement of the cloth piece displaces or vibrates the tape tension controlling member from the rest position and in doing so effects a lessening of tension in the tape thereby effecting feeding of the tape in an amount or length which is commensurate to the length of cloth passing beneath the foot of the sewing machine.

The present invention will be better understood by reference to the detailed description which follows, and the drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a view of a sewing machine with the attachment of the present invention shown in elevation as seen from the position of an operator;

FIG. 2 is a section of FIG. 1 taken along the line IIII-,

FIG. 3 is a sectional side elevation taken along the line III-III showing a portion of a sewing machine and the attachment of the present invention;

FIGS. 4 and 5 are detailed views of the tape tension controlling member of the present invention.

In the drawing, like reference characters designate similar parts in the several views. Although the description of the present invention which follows will be set forth with reference to a specific, preferred embodiment thereof, it is to be understood that many variations and modifications thereof are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

With reference to FIG. 1, there is shown a sewing machine 11 with the thread 13 to be used for sewing wound thereon. A plate 15 is mounted on the base of said sewing machine. Rigidly fixed to said plate 15 is an upright shaft 17 upon which there is rotatably mounted a spool 19. A spiral tension spring 21 mounted on the shaft 17 is controlled by a pressure nut 23 adjustably attached to the upper end of shaft 17. A. washer 18 maintains the spring 17 in position. The nut 23 is threaded to the shaft 17, and adjustment thereof operates to control the tension in spring 21 to thereby permit adjustment of the resistance to rotation of the spool 13. The spool 19 is the tape feeding supply spool and has wound thereon a tape or ribbon 25. As shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, the tape 25 extends from the spool 19 to an arm 2'7 mounted on the plate 15 by means of a rivet 29 or other suitable connecting means. It has been found that the arm 27 is most desirably positioned at an angle of 60 with the plate 15, but this may be varied within the scope of the present invention. Hereafter, the ribbon extends from the arm 27 to the arm 31. The arm 31 is mounted on upright portion 33 extending from the plate 15. It will be noted that the arm 33 is formed in a bent or slightly twisted manner. The arm 33 is formed in this manner to efiect the most advantageous positioning of the arm 31 upon which the tape 25 is wound. A disc or end piece 35 affixed to the end of arm 31 operates to insure that the tape 25 is maintained in position on arm 31.

After passing over the arm 31 the tape 25 is Wound through the tape tension controlling member indicated generally by the numeral 37, and shown in detail in FIGS. 4 and 5. The tape tension controlling member will now be described in detail.

The tension controlling member is formed of a U- shaped channel comprising upright portions 39 and 41 and a bottom portion 43. Positioned between the upright portions 41 and 39 is a leader 45. Extending between upright portions 39 and 41, and through leader 45, are rods 47, 49 and 51. As best shown in FIG. 5, the tension controlling member 37 is rotatably mounted on upright portion 33 by means of rod 51. A bolt 53 extends between the upright portions 39 and 41, and has threaded thereon the leader 45. The bolt 53 may be turned by means of hand nut 55 afiixed thereto to move the leader 45. As shown in FIG. 5, rotation of the bolt 53 will move the leader 45 up or down. With reference to FIG. 2, rotation of the bolt 53 will cause the leader 45 to move right or left. Adjustment of the leader 45 by means of bolt 53 effects proper positioning of the tape 25, and also allows for adapting the present invention to utilize tapes of varying widths as will be explained hereinafter.

The rods 47 and 49 have their ends rigidly fixed in upright portions 39 and 41 by any suitable means. The

rod 51 has plates 39 and 41 rotatably mounted thereon and is rigidly afiixed to the upright portion 33. The rods 47, 49 and 51. extend through the leader 45 in a manner whereby they will not interfere with the adjustment of leader 45 when the bolt 53 is rotated.

The tape 25 extends from the arm 31 through the tape tension control mechanism and around the rods 51, 49 and 47, as shown in the various figures of the drawing. As best shown in FIG. 3, the tape thereafter extends beneath the foot 57 of the sewing machine where it is joined to cloth piece 59 by means of the needle 61.

By reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, it will be noted that the portion 43 of the tape tension controlling member bears against the cloth piece at point 63. As the sewing machine is operated, the cloth piece 59 is driven to pass beneath the foot 57 in a well known manner. The tape 25, having been attached or sewn to the cloth piece 59, is also driven to pass beneath the foot 57 when the machine is operated. As the cloth piece 59 moves beneath the tape tension controlling member 37, it engages the tension controlling member at point 63, thereby causing the tension controlling member to vibrate and rotate about the rod 51. The movement of the cloth piece 59 beneath the tape tension controlling member 37 imparts an upwardly directed force at point 63 thereby effecting clockwise vibratory rotation of the tension controlling member 37 about the shaft 51. This rotation or vibration, imparted when the cloth piece 59 is in motion, serves to loosen or decrease the tension on tape 25 there by facilitating feeding of the tape to insure that the length of tape passing beneath the foot 57 is substantially equivalent to the length of cloth to which it is to be joined.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that when operating a sewing machine with the attachment of the present invention, to sew tape onto a piece of cloth, the tension of the tape may be initially controlled by adjustment of the hand nut 23. This tension may be varied as desired by the operator, and in accordance with the type of cloth used to facilitate convenient operation of the machine. As the machine is operated, the tape will pass around arm 27 and over arm 31, through the tape tension controlling mechanism which then automatically effects a more delicate control of the tension in the tape to insure that a uniform seam between cloth and tape is effected.

With reference to FIG. 2, it will be noted that the edge 58 of cloth piece 59 bears against an adjustable guard arm 65. The guard arm 65 is fixed to rod 67, which extends through a block 69. The block 69 is affixed to the plate and has mounted thereon an adjustable nut 71. By means of nut 71 the rod 67 may be loosened to move the plate 65 right or left as shown in FIG. 2. This permits selective positiom'ng of the cloth piece 59 to allow for juncture thereto of the tape 25 at a variety of desired positions.

With reference to FIG. 2 it will be seen that the tape is guided into engagement with the cloth piece by the leader 45 as the tape passes through the tape tension controlling mechanism 37. If a tape wider than that shown in FIG. 2 is to be used the leader 45 may be moved to the right by means of rotation of the hand nut 55 thereby effecting proper guidance of a wider tape. If a narrower width tape is to be used the leader 4-5 may be moved leftwardly, as shown in FIG. 2, by adjustment of bolt 53. i i

Referring to FIG. 2, it will be seen that the plate 15 is formed with a slot 73 and a nut 75. The nut 75 is for the purpose of fastening the plate 15 to the base of the sewing machine, and may be of any well known means suitable for this purpose. It will therefore be apparent that the entire assembly may be detached from, and connected to, the sewing machine in a very convenient and facile manner, merely by manipulation of the nut 75.

While in the foregoing specification the present invention has been described with reference to a preferred embodiment thereof, it will be apparent that variations and modifications thereof are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, it is not intended that the present invention be restricted to the particular embodiment illustrated and described, but is to cover all modifications that may fall within the scope of the appended claim.

Having thus described the invention what is claimed is:

A tape feeding attachment for a sewing machine adapted to sew tape onto a cloth piece comprising, a plate adapted to be selectively mounted onto said sewing machine, an upright shaft affixed to said plate, a tape feeding supply spool rotatably mounted on said shaft, an adjustable spring afiixed to said shaft operable to vary the tension in said spool, a pair of guide arms mounted on said plate, a U-shaped channel, one end thereof rotatably mounted on said plate and the opposite end thereof positioned to bear against said cloth piece, a leader mounted within said U-shaped channel and substantially coextensive therewith, a leader adjusting screw mounted on said channel to drive said leader to a plurality of positions within said channeLand a plurality of rods extending across said channel and positioned to have said tape wound therearound, said guide arms having said tape wound therearound, and directing the path of said tape through said U-shaped channel and around said rods therein and adjacent to said leader, said rods and said leader directing said tape into abutting relationship with said cloth piece to permit juncture therebetween by said sewing machine, said leader being movable by said leader adjusting screw to a plurality of positions to effect guidance of a plurality of tapes of different widths, said U- shaped channel operable to be rotatably vibrated by said cloth piece when said cloth piece is in motion to lessen tension in said tape thereby to effect feeding of a length of tape substantially equivalent with the length of cloth fed, in a manner whereby a uniform seam between said tape and said cloth piece may be effected by said sewing machine.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 708,418 Smith Sept. 2, 1902 814,603 Herman Mar. 6, 1906 959,330 Fleigel Mar. 24, 1910 1,465,000 Romano Aug. 14, 1923 1,607,532 Halberg Nov. 16, 1926 1,827,596 Maier Oct. 13, 1931 1,852,952 Chudner Apr. 5, 1932 2,060,631 Myers Nov. 10, 1936 2,653,559 Picucci Sept. 29, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 496,836 Great Britain Dec. 7, 1938 

